Shropshire Star

Scorching South Korean heatwave scuppers Shropshire Scouts' coastal jamboree

A scorching heatwave hitting South Korea has meant the end to a coastal adventure for a group of Shropshire scouts, as organisers arranged for them to be moved back to hotels in the capital, Seoul.

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Shropshire Scouts were said to be having an 'amazing time' despite the heatwave

The group of about 27 scouts from Shropshire are among 4,500 from the UK - and more than 45,000 others from almost every country in the world - that have travelled to Gunsan-si in South Korea for the World Scout Jamboree.

But the event comes amid a severe heatwave, with authorities in the country issuing the highest-level heat warning in four years, as temperatures in some parts of the country exceeded 38C (100F) this week.

Around 400 scouts have reported to have fallen ill with heat exhaustion since the event began on Tuesday, some of them from the UK, local media has reported.

Shropshire Scouts at the beach in South Korea

The UK Foreign Office said the situation was being closely monitored, while South Korean authorities have pumped millions into improving conditions including air-conditioned buses and cold-water trucks, and hundreds more sanitary and medical staff brought in.

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